The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would propose an amendment to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) that would revoke licenses of drug users, ban drug-impaired drivers from taking the license test for three years and impose penalties on their passengers.
It made the announcement after consulting officials from the Judicial Yuan, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and the National Police Agency last month on tackling the rise of drug-impaired cases.
Currently, drug-impaired drivers would have their licenses suspended for one to two years.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Drug-impaired drivers face administrative and criminal punishment, the transportation ministry said, adding that authorities would prioritize pursuing criminal liability.
Aside from imposing stricter penalties on drug-impaired drivers, the amendment would also stipulate that users of Category 1 and Category 2 narcotics — including heroin, morphine, cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy and marijuana — would have their driver’s licenses revoked and be barred from reapplying for a specified period, even if they were not caught driving, the transportation ministry said.
Consumers of Category 3 and Category 4 narcotics, including ketamine, flunitrazepam, zolpidem and alprazolam, would have their driver’s license suspended, it added.
The amendment would also raise fines for first-time drug-impaired driving offenders, while passengers aged 18 or older who knowingly ride with drug-impaired drivers would also be subject to penalties, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, drivers whose licenses were revoked or suspended due to drug-impaired driving would only be allowed to renew their licenses or take the license test again if they undergo drug addiction treatment or drug-hazard courses and do not use drugs for a specified time period, the ministry said.
It said before the amendment to the act is completed, it would revise the Road Traffic Safety Rules (道路交通安全規則), which would require drivers who are confirmed to have used illicit drugs to complete mandatory treatment or educational courses and meet certain requirements for a specified period before being permitted to renew or reapply for a driver’s license. Such a revision does not need legislative approval.
Separately, saliva tests might soon be administered in the nation’s primary, junior-high and high schools starting in the next fall semester to detect etomidate, an anesthetic drug that has been increasingly used in e-cigarette cartridges.
Etomidate, also known as “zombie vapes,” is an emerging illegal drug.
Schools have already administered or scheduled ad hoc urine tests to students who had been found using drugs or had been suspended, Ministry of Education Department of Student Affairs Director-General Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said.
“However, some students would dilute the urine test samples or swap them with tea to conceal drug use. Meanwhile, emerging drugs are metabolized relatively quickly in the body. As such, we are considering using saliva tests as an auxiliary screening tool, which helps simplify administrative procedures and enable timely access to counseling resources,” Tsai said.
If a saliva screening yields a positive result, it must be confirmed by a urine test before being reported through the campus safety reporting system, she said.
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